Volunteer Opportunities at SYGW

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See what our volunteers do, or ask to talk to one of our volunteers.

Volunteer Opportunities

Below is a list of our current volunteer opportunities. You may also view our volunteer opportunities calendar and register online.

Please contact Josh Hall, Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator, at 206.632.0352 x 15 or jhall@thechurchcouncil.org if you are interested.

New Volunteer Opportunity

SYGW is looking for volunteers who want to do garden work consistently during the months of May and June.  Our Garden Coordinators, Katie and Marne, will be at UWBG on Thursdays, except for May 29.  They are looking for committed gardeners who would like to assist them from 11:00am-2:00pm on these days.  To sign-up contact Volunteer Coordinator, Josh Hall, at 206-632-0352 x 15 or jhall@thechurchcouncil.org.

Spring/Summer Work Parties

 Work Parties are a great way to help SYGW.  There is garden work that needs to be done this summer that will take some extra hands.  SYGW is calling all volunteers and their friends to help us grow organic produce.  We already hosted four successful work parties in March and April.  At one work party, volunteers seeded in the green house at UWBG on March 11 to start our plants early.  The other work party was at Marra-Desimone Farm on March 15.  Volunteers at this work party prepared beds and amended soil with compost.  So, the beds were ready for planting the next week when Spring Crew started.  The two work parties in April helped SYGW pot-up tomato and basil plants to sell at the Seattle Tilth Edible Plant Sale and the U-District Street Fair this May.  Thank you to all of the volunteers who participated in these four work parties.  There are two more Spring Work Parties that have been set.  Come on an individual basis or bring friends.  Below are the work party dates and times:

Saturday, June 7: Garden Maintenance at Marra Farm- 12:00pm-3:30pm

Thursday, July 10: Marra Farm Work Party- 11:00am-2:00pm

If you want to know more or if you are interested in joining one of these work parties, please contact Josh Hall, Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator. 206.632.0352 x 15 or jhall@thechurchcouncil.org

Training Opportunities

Homelessness 101

The University District Service Providers Alliance will be offering their excellent Homelessness 101 training classes on Wednesday, May 7, in the evening and on Saturday, May 31, in the afternoon. This class is an introduction to causes, perceptions, and issues of youth and young adult homelessness.  SYGW strongly recommends that all of our volunteers who will be working with youth take this course, which aims to give an overview of homelessness and street life as experienced by youth and young adults.  Please, email training@udsp.org for questions regarding the dates and times of this month’s trainings and then email your name, email address, mailing address, and preferred session to the same email address to register for these free trainings, or sign-up at www.udsp.org.

 Garden Mentors – work with our youth!

We are looking for enthusiastic adult volunteers (age 21+) to be good role models while working alongside youth at our garden in the University District this summer.  Summer Crew will work Tuesdays – Fridays starting Tuesday, July 1, and continuing through Friday, August 22. Volunteers are needed who can commit to one day per week for four hours for the entire 9-week crew. 

Mentors provide a listening ear to the youth, model good workplace behavior, and support the staff in facilitating lessons and projects. This is not a one-on-one mentoring position. 

You can either sign up to work alongside the crew during the times that they are doing gardening work in the morning or you can assist with the educational part of our program in the afternoon.  The educational curriculum includes science, nutrition, and ecology. Crew will be from 9:30-4:30 pm, Tuesday – Friday during the summer.  However, volunteers are only expected to be there for half of the day. 

Both novice and experienced gardeners are welcome. Contact Josh Hall, Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator right away to apply for this exciting volunteer position. 206.632.0352 x 15 or jhall@thechurchcouncil.org. 

Special Projects

Share a skill with us, and volunteer from home or on the weekends! Contact us to offer your expertise in horticulture, culinary arts, technology, or another area: SYGWvol@thechurchcouncil.org.  

Advisory Board

SYGW seeks Advisory Board Members. Members meet once a month to ensure that SYGW’s mission, programs, vision, fiscal management, and policies will be relevant and meaningful to those served by the organization. Commitment: Individuals on the Advisory Board serve for a minimum of three years with an average commitment of 10 hours per month. If you are interested, please contact Janice Dilworth, Program Director, jdilworth@thechurchcouncil.org or 206.632.0352 x16. 

Community Outreach Representative

SYGW seeks community members to assist us with connecting our program with local neighborhoods. Community Outreach volunteers may represent SYGW at fairs and events, give presentations to community groups, and more. For more information, please contact SYGW’s Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator at 206.632.0352 x15 or SYGWvol@thechurchcouncil.org.  

Pizza Ragazzi Donations

Pizza Ragazzi at 5201 University Way NE in Seattle has promised to provide pizza donations for a reunion of 2007/2008 SYGW crew members on May 24.  We are very thankful for their support and want to support them, as well.  Next time any of you SYGW supporters wants to order pizza, try Pizza Ragazzi in the U-District and tell them that you heard about them from SYGW.  Thank you Pizza Ragazzi for taking action in your community.